Aerial
by SupernaturalAngel
Summary: A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. But the end of the search is not what either of them might have expected... Slightly E/S.
1. The Visitor

**Summary:** _A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. Potentially E/S. _

_This is post-season two. In terms of the books, this would be after the third book. (But I'm sticking to the True Blood version of the characters and past events…)_

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**Chapter One: **_Visitor_

It was winter, so dark fell earlier. Sookie was giving the kitchen a very thorough cleaning.

The week had been cold, and Sookie had hardly had a minute in the fresh, cold air aside from the minute between the house and her car, the car and Merlotte's. Today she'd been looking forward to talking a little walk, but the dark had fallen early and the temperature had dropped with it, so Sookie pulled out her cleaning supplies instead and turned on the TV in the kitchen. She had just finished the sink and was starting on the floors, half-listening to the news, half lost in her own thoughts, when the words "missing children" and "Louisiana" woke her from her daze.

She turned toward the TV, puzzled. Surely she'd know if there were missing children so near to Bon Temps. But this was the first she'd heard of such a thing.

"Police have noted that the string of missing children began several months ago, and that the pattern has just now has begun to emerge in the eyes of the authorities. Eight children have disappeared in eight different small towns, between the hours of nightfall and ten PM. Nearly all of the disappearances occurred just outside of the victims' homes. Two of the children were taking out the trash and one was walking a dog.

"Six of the victims were girls, and all range in age between six and eleven. The latest disappearance occurred in Shreveport, Louisiana just last night. Authorities have been searching the surrounding area with no success."

Sookie shivered. What sort of beast of a person preyed on small children? Just a few miles from Bon Temps, nonetheless. Of course, this couldn't be a local, since the other seven children were missing from Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Mississippi. It was as if the criminal has left a blood trail… except instead of blood, it was missing children.

Sookie interrupted this unsettling train of thoughts, trying to remember if she'd scrubbed under the kitchen table, and jumped when the doorbell rang out. She couldn't imagine who it could possibly be. Sam was at Merlotte's, of course, where Tara was also working at the moment, and it couldn't possibly be Jason, because God knows, he never knocked.

The only person Sookie could think of was Bill, and she wanted to see him less than pretty much anyone else in the world right now. They had just separated less than two weeks ago, just the day before his month-long trip to Europe. If he'd come back early to attempt to persuade her to take him back… well… Sookie shook her head. That was most certainly not going to happen.

The knock sounded again, solid and certain. Sookie snapped out of her thoughts, and walked to the door. Whoever it was, she certainly wouldn't mind a bit of a break from scrubbing the floors.

At least, that's what she'd thought before she'd opened the door.

"Bill isn't here." Sookie spoke out, putting her hand on her hip. The blond vampire looked unfazed, and even slightly bored, which irritated her even more.

"Yes, I know. And even if Bill were in Bon Temps, I would no longer look for him here." Eric responded lazily. "May I come in?"

"No!" She didn't like the fact that Eric knew about her and Bill, not one little bit. Suddenly she felt a flutter of apprehension. She could no longer rely on Bill to know if she were ever in trouble. And since she was no longer _his_, she was fair game to other vampires. Not that Eric would ever- Well, she hoped not, at least. Sookie stood her ground, blocking the entrance, even though she knew he couldn't enter unless she explicitly granted him permission.

"My, my. Feeling a little upset tonight, are we?"

"If you're not looking for Bill, than what do you want, Eric? I have floors to scrub, I don't have time for nonsense."

"Invite me in. It's no subject to discuss on the doorstep."

Sookie hesitated. Sure, she'd known Eric for more than a year now, but she could hardly say that it was beyond him to pull some ridiculous stunt.

"Promise you won't try any hanky-panky?"

Eric grinned and raised his hand. "Not tonight."

Sookie moved aside. "Eric, would you like to come in?"

Before she could blink, he was sitting at the kitchen table, and she was staring into her empty backyard. She shut the door.

"Now I invited you in, the least you could do is move like a human. You know I don't like it when you do that."

"I apologize." He smirked, motioning for her to sit in the chair across from him. Granting her permission to sit in her own kitchen. _How gracious_, Sookie thought with irritation.

"So now that you're inside… what is it?"

"Have you seen the news today?"

"A bit of it, yes. And?" Sookie was trying to be as hospitable as she could, but she was cranky from being cooped up inside all week, working mostly, and her knees hurt from cleaning the floors on her only night off this week. Not to mention that if she'd had to choose someone to spend her night off with, it would most certainly not be Eric.

Eric was watching her growing irritation with a mild look of amusement, but beneath it she could sense that he was not quite his usual self. He looked… thrown off, unsettled. It unsettled _her_ just to think of what kind of horrible thing it took to get a rise out of Mr. Calm-and-collected.

"Just spit it out, won't you? You might have all the time in the world but I'm just a lowly _mortal_ human." Sookie crossed her legs, tapping her fingers impatiently.

"I need your help."

"And why should I help you?"

"Because you heard the news report of the missing children, I assume."

Sookie pulled away from him, horrified. "Are you saying-"

Eric grimaced. "It is strictly against our laws to feed from those under the age of consent. But unfortunately, just like in the human world… there are certain people that like to think they can skirt around the rules…"

"But, how do you know that it was a vampire? Can't they escape? During the day?"

"The bodies have been found."

"But the police just said-"

"Not by the police. The vampires of the region have found the bodies. All except the last child."

"But how-"

Eric sniffed lightly. "The first one was found by accident by one of our kind, and thereafter each Area sheriff has been assigned to find the body left behind. We're quicker than the police. Heightened senses."

"You have to tell the police!" Sookie jumped to her feet.

"Sit." Eric said in his most intimidating voice.

"I will not have you telling me what to do in my own home!" She replied indignantly. "You are a guest and if you don't behave like one I _will_ withdraw my invitation."

Eric watched her, unnervingly still, as if waiting for a child to finish its tantrum.

"Why are you telling me this?" Sookie asked suddenly, her voice quiet.

"Because I need your help. The last child, which disappeared from Shreveport, is still missing."

"So can't you just sniff out the body? What am I supposed to do?"

"We can't find a body. Our trail goes cold in the middle of the woods."

Sookie stared at him blankly. "And you want me to…?"

"If we can't smell the dead corpse, it must mean only one thing."

Sookie leaned forward. "You think she's still alive?"

Eric nodded ever so slightly. "I want you to listen for her."

"Eric! You have to call the police! If there's a chance that child is still alive, they have to know. The parents must be going crazy, worried-"

"If you want to be responsible for starting a civil war between vampires and humans, feel free to give them a call," Eric responded in a steely tone. Sookie froze. She could only imagine what the Fellowship of the Sun would do with this information. A vampire child predator. Serial-killer, really. The VRA certainly would never pass.

"Have you caught him? The vampire? How are you going to catch him?"

Eric shrugged, but Sookie could tell he was just as unsettled by the idea of a potential child predator in his area upset him. "First things first. That child, or body, is my responsibility. If the police find it, with fang-marks… Well, let's just say the limited vampire rights offered at the moment will no longer be offered."

"You want me to help you cover up a crime?"

Eric's gaze bore into hers. "I want you to find a missing child."


	2. Listening

**Summary:** _A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. Potentially E/S. This is post-season two. In terms of the books, this would be after the third book. (But I'm sticking to the True Blood version of the characters and past events…)_

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**Chapter Two: **_Listening_

No more than ten minutes later, Sookie was climbing into Eric's red Corvette, wondering how she always ended up getting roped into situations that had the potential to develop into the first battles of a Vampire-Human war? Sookie felt a pang of loneliness. Bill was no longer here, to mediate between Eric and Sookie. And even though she hated to admit it to herself… she didn't exactly feel 100% safe surrounded by vampires in Fangtasia… In fact, the only vampire she felt safe with, aside from Bill and Jessica, of course, was Eric. And still, he had a nasty habit of not quite telling the whole truth…

"You think I'm lying to you?"

The question snapped her out of her own thoughts.

"Stop it. Just because you tricked me drink your blood doesn't mean you know me."

"I believe it does, actually."

"Slow down. I'd prefer to not die tonight, thank you."

Eric grinned, but slowed slightly. "You're not going to die tonight. I'd pull you out of the car before it crashed."

"As much as I trust you and all, I'd really rather not test that theory."

"Tomorrow night, are you working?" He said, his voice practically dripping sex.

"Are you seriously trying ask me out right now?" Sookie snapped, even though she had to admit, that was not her first instinct. She wriggled in her seat, looking away from his perfect jawline, trying to watch the woods whiz by at breakneck speed instead, but the blur, in addition to her empty stomach and her apprehension, made her seriously queasy.

When they came to the next crossroads, Eric took a sharp left instead of the right that would have led them toward Fangtasia. They were driving deep into the woods. Sookie's eyes kept drifting toward Eric, and then toward the blur of the trees outside the window, so she made a compromise by shutting her eyes tight with the hope of getting a minute or two of rest in. If she'd known she'd be joining a nighttime search party that was very likely to go 'til the early hours of morning, she would have taken a nap. It was making her nervous, just sitting still, when there was a scared girl out there in the woods who was probably hungry, cold, and possibly with severe blood loss.

About ten minutes later, Eric pulled over and turned the engine off.

"What's her name?" Sookie asked, as she trailed after Eric, who was walking much faster than her, even though he was obviously putting forth an effort to walk at a "human" pace.

"Aerial." He replied. "Do you hear anything?"

Sookie halted, concentrating. There was an overwhelming silence around them. The only sounds were the branches of trees hitting each other and the sound of dead leaves being picked up by the wind. There was no trace of thought. For a split second, she wished she could hear what Eric was thinking. She brushed the thought aside and relaxed.

"Nothing."

Eric began to walk again.

"How old is she?" Sookie asked.

"Eleven."

Sookie didn't speak after that, simply following Eric, who followed the trail of the little girl's scent. But there was no one here, no human within radius of at least fifty feet, certainly. The trees were getting thicker, they were walking farther and farther from any form of civilization, and Sookie has gotten nothing so much as a hum.

Suddenly Eric stopped. "This is it. It just stops. Right here."

Sookie looked around, listening as intently as she could. There was no human beside herself within her range. But how could a scent just drop off in the middle of the woods, with no endpoint?

"Do you smell him? The vampire?"

"Yes. His trail leads north, growing faint about twenty feet from here. I've sent people in that direction to see what they can find." For the first time since Sookie had met him, Eric looked uncertain, glancing around them uneasily.

"There's another smell here." He sniffed. "It's new, it wasn't here the last time I came…"

"Could it be me? I probably smell awful, like Clorox or something-" Just as Eric was about to laugh, he stopped.

"Shh." Eric suddenly stilled, and watching him, she suddenly realized how truly animalistic he behaved in moments like these. Whatever he heard, or thought he heard, was way beyond the scope of her lowly human ears, so she simply watched and waited. His pose, the muscles of his face, his frozen fingers, all seemed to make him akin to a deer, trying to figure out if it was being hunted. The darkness of his coat made him nearly disappear into the shadows. The only things that gleamed in the moonlight were his hair, face, and hands. She wished she could see his eyes and the direction they were pointing, but they were hidden in shadow. He looked large and very solid when he stood so still, which Sookie found comforting. She herself felt extremely visible, in her pale blue coat, and very _mortal_. She felt a certain electricity running though the space, and the only reason she wasn't bolting back toward the car was her obligation toward the little girl, and the knowledge that if danger arose, Eric would grab her and run before she could blink her eye.

After several minutes of stillness, Sookie was growing agitated with standing in the same pose. She had just opened her mouth to complain when she heard the leaves crinkle, extremely close to her feet. Before she could look down, she felt fingers wrap around her ankle, and a deep cry tore from the earth like nothing she'd ever heard before.

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Author's Note: Sorry I posted the wrong version of the first chapter yesterday! I was playing around with the idea of where to cut it off... and I uploaded the wrong one. Please let me know what you think of the idea/characters! It's my first time doing True Blood and I'm hoping they're not too OOC. Any thoughts? Any suggestions or situations you'd like to see arise?


	3. Unearthed

**Summary:** _A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. Potentially E/S. This is post-season two. In terms of the books, this would be after the third book. (But I'm sticking to the True Blood version of the characters and past events…)_

**Chapter Three: **_Unearthed_

Before she had even realized what was happening, Sookie was five feet away, and Eric was on his knees, at the spot where she had just been standing. He was digging furiously. The hand that poked out grabbed upward at the empty air.

Sookie watched in horror as Eric unearthed a writhing, dirt-encrusted body.

"Eric- that can't be- no." Sookie stood frozen.

The being rose to its knees. It was a thin child, with long, dirt-coated hair. Its cry had turned into a wail, and was filling the woods.

Eric clamped his hand over her mouth.

"Enough!"

The noise stopped, and the being's eyes widened, focusing for the first time on Eric. Suddenly, a whimper and then a sniffle came out, and Eric pulled his hand away quickly. The girl began to cry, loudly.

"I just wanna go home, please, I'll do anything you want me to, I won't tell anybody, just take me home. Please, can I go home?" The blood pouring out of her tear ducts mixed with the dirt on her skin to create a horrifying mess. Sookie could hardly believe all of this was happening a couple of feet away from her. Only half an hour ago, she'd been scrubbing her kitchen floor, and now she was watching- Well, she wasn't sure exactly what she was seeing, but what she suspected was a very, very bad ending to the search.

She stood, rooted to her spot, knowing she ought to try and comfort the sobbing little creature, but finding herself weary and even a tinge disgusted by the idea of the newborn vampire. Eric obviously had no more of an idea of what to do than she did, because he was also frozen, watching the scene unfold. The girl continued to sob, and Sookie forced herself to take a step forward, and kneel to the girl's level.

"Aerial, honey? Is that you?" She said, in the most soothing voice she could muster.

The sobs halted. The poor creature looked up with large, terrified eyes.

"Who are you?" The little girl asked.

"My name is Sookie, and this is Eric," She said, reaching out to push the girl's hair away from her face. Eric grabbed her hand midway.

"She's a newborn. You smell too good." Eric focused on the girl, stepping slightly in front of Sookie protectively. "Do you know where your maker is, little girl?"

"I'm not little. I'm eleven, mister. And I don't know what you're talking about." Aerial seemed to realize that she was kneeling, and began to rise to her feet. Sookie and Eric followed in suit.

"Right, well. Let's get going. It's too dangerous to be out here. We can catch up in the car." Eric grabbed Aerial's wrist, which caused Sookie to cry out.

"Eric!"

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm not supposed to get in cars with strangers! I want to go home!" The wails began again, as Eric dragged the girl behind him.

"We're gonna help you, I promise," Sookie tried to make up for Eric's hostility.

"Are you gonna take me home?" Aerial asked hopefully, all of her attention aimed at Sookie rather than the large, extremely strong man dragging her through the woods like an oversized doll.

"Well let's get you cleaned up first and then we can talk about you going home, alright, sweetheart?"

Aerial nodded slightly. "Let go of my arm, please."

Eric halted and turned to her. "Are you going to walk with us?"

Aerial looked around for a split second, and obviously considering an alternative. But the scenery was spooky, and devoid of any other signs of life. She nodded again, somewhat miserably. Eric released her, and the three of them were back in the car in less than five minutes.

* * *

The car ride to Fangtasia seemed to last an eternity, even though it couldn't have been more than fifteen minutes. Eric insisted that Aerial sit up from with him, (as far away from Sookie as possible, and still within his reach), so Sookie sat alone in the backseat. She most definitely had not considered this as one of the potential endings to the search. Mostly she'd just focused on hoping that the girl was still alive, with a shed of fear that they'd find another fang-marked dead body. But she'd never considered the possibility of an in-between, and from Eric's stone-cold silence, she assumed that he hadn't either. She was pretty sure that if she could read his thoughts right about now, they would pretty much run along the lines of "shit, shit shit SHIT".

What was the protocol anyway, on child vampires? Sookie had never considered the possibility of a lethal combination of a childish temperament, paired with bloodlust and incredible strength. And a body that would never grow or change. An eternal child, a Peter Pan of the night. Sookie shivered. It sounded tragic, really. She'd thought Jessica had had it bad.

By this time, Eric was pulling into the lot of Fangtasia, by-passing the crowded front entrance and heading straight toward the employee entrance. He parked as close to the door as humanly possible, leaving barely enough room for Aerial to open the passenger door. He turned the ignition off and took his jacket off, handing it to the girl.

"Put this over your head."

She stared at him. "Why?"

"Put the coat over your head. And no wailing or I'll put you right back in the ground where you came from." He replied coolly, opening his door. Aerial looked back at Sookie.

"Just do as he says, honey. We'll figure everything out once we get inside, right?"

The girl nodded, still looking bewildered, but she obeyed, following Eric inside the dark corridor. Sookie trailed behind them, wondering what Eric planned to do exactly.


	4. Hunger Pangs

**Summary:** _A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. Potentially E/S. This is post-season two. In terms of the books, this would be after the third book. (But I'm sticking to the True Blood version of the characters and past events…)_

**Chapter Four: **_Hunger Pangs_

Eric led them straight into his office and shut the door. Aerial examined the room carefully, and upon finding no outward signs of anything threatening, proceeded to seat herself on top of Eric's desk. Sookie could tell he didn't find this arrangement particularly appealing, but he let it slide.

"I'm hungry. Really really hungry. Can I have something to eat? Please?" Aerial dropped Eric's leather jacket next to her, and began to try and remove clumps of dirt from her hair.

"If you cooperate, I'll let you feed. But first-"

"Can you take me to McDonalds? Please?" Aerial interrupted. Sookie could see the impatience on Eric's face growing, but a smirk emerged.

"I don't think you'll be eating anymore French fries," he said. Sookie grabbed his arm, before he could continue with the explanation.

"We'll get you some French fries, don't you worry. And a milkshake, and whatever else you want." The girl's face broke into a timid smile. Eric rolled his eyes and tried to continue with the more important matter at hand.

"Who made you?"

Aerial tore her eyes off Sookie to look back at the imposing figure that kept asking strange questions. She was beginning to think he might just be off his rocker. Why were grown-ups so damn weird? Who made her? What was that supposed to mean?

"Made me what?"

"Made you-"

"Eric!" Sookie pulled on his elbow as hard as she could this time. "I think that maybe we should let Aerial clean herself up, and have a little something to eat before we tell her- well, you know. Ask her about things. Don't you think?"

Eric clearly did not agree with this approach, but before he could say anything, Sookie continued.

"And I think we should have a little chat while she showers."

This amused him to no end. He was being called aside for a time-out by a cute little blonde mortal. Sookie smiled up at him as charmingly as she could muster, and looked around. She spotted several unopened boxes labeled T-Shirts, and set to work, pulling out a bright red Fangtasia shirt for Aerial to change into, since her clothes were caked with earth. Eric looked on as she ushered the girl into the bathroom, showing her the soap and handing her a stack of paper towels to dry off with.

In a minute the shower was running and she and Eric stood alone in his office. He inched toward her, until they were almost touching.

"I don't appreciate you undermining my authority." He breathed.

It took her a few seconds to comprehend the meaning of the words, because even in a moment like this- well, when he got that close and used that tone, Sookie found it somewhat difficult to concentrate. She blinked, wondering for a second if he had succeeded in glamouring her. Unfortunately, she was pretty sure she couldn't blame her delayed reaction on magic.

It took her another few seconds to realize how pleased Eric looked with the effect he'd had on her, and she snapped back.

"I don't appreciate you acting like a bully to a scared little girl. You should be ashamed of yourself."

"She's not a little girl, Sookie. She's a vampire. And a really dangerous one at that."

"Yeah, but she doesn't know that yet!"

"Obviously, seeing as she thinks she's craving fast food."

"Well now. Look. It won't kill you to get her some, will it?"

"What's the point? The minute she puts it into her mouth she'll realize there's something weird about her, and then she'll have to find out she's a vampire anyway."

"Look, I'm no vampire but all I'm saying is that, it's a lot easier trying to get some information out of someone who's just a little upset, and a hell of a lot harder when they're howling and screaming and bawling their eyes out." She stood in front of Eric, hands on her hips, realizing just how little she was in comparison to him. "But you know, that's just my opinion, and I'm just a little human."

"You're not human," Eric countered.

"And what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Never mind. This isn't the time to discuss it." Eric moved closer to her once again, touching her chin lightly. "In fact, I've put you in enough danger as it is tonight. I'll have someone take you home."

"Oh no you don't. I will not be dismissed. You asked for help, and just when I might actually be useful, you try to kick me out so you can continue bullying that little girl. I'm not going anywhere." Sookie stood her ground.

Eric pulled back, surveying her.

"Besides, when was the last time you were in charge of an eleven year old girl?"

"A vampire." He corrected.

"Right. Well. An eleven year old vampire. You're gonna need some help with her nonetheless. And I just don't see Pam lining up to baby-sit. So you're just gonna be stuck with me, I guess."

Eric leaning close, into her ear, whispering. "Are you offering to play house with me?"

Sookie would have laughed at him if he hadn't sounded so… seductive. Which she severely objected to. The last thing she wanted him to think was that this was about him.

"I believe it's something more along the lines of making you behave yourself and keeping you from causing severe trauma and emotional damage to a child."

He laughed. "Whatever you helps you sleep at night, Sookie." He touched her hair and sniffed at her enticing, subtle scent, nearing her neck. How he wanted to taste her… if she tasted as good as she smelled…

Sookie pulled away. "What are you doing? Get away from me. Just because I'm staying doesn't mean you can try to get into my veins. Or my pants."

"You aren't wearing any," Eric smirked. It was true. She was wearing a sweater dress. But before she could reply, the bathroom door opened and Aerial emerged.

The difference was astonishing. She had gone into the bathroom a terrifying dirty creature and had come out a terrified pre-pubescent girl with tangles of dark brown hair hanging to her waist. She looked no different than any other eleven year old. Her skin had not had the time to become pale yet, and she hadn't even discovered her fangs.

"Do you have a hairbrush?" She asked timidly, looking from Sookie to Eric.

"Of course," He replied smoothly and slid over to his desk. He handed her a comb, and she proceeded to start untangling her mane.

"There's a hairdryer in the bottom drawer in the bathroom." He added. Aerial nodded and disappeared again, with her new task.

Sookie looked over at Eric and could hardly stop herself from laughing. _Of course_ Eric would have a hair dryer in his office. Sookie looked back at the bathroom, where Aerial was still somewhat comically trying to get the nasty tangles out of her hair. She allowed her grin to break out, hoping Eric would think she was smiling at Aerial and not his hair habits. He saw her expression and upon studying her face, added in a warning tone;

"Before you get too attached, you have to realize, Aerial's existence is completely illegal. It is extremely dangerous and against all vampire laws to turn children. No one aside from Pam can know that we have her. Even keeping her while we try to find her maker is dangerous, but after we find him, we will have to turn them both over to the authorities."

For a second, Sookie imagined marching with Aerial into a police station, but then she realized that Eric meant the vampire authorities and shuddered. She didn't even want to think of what they might do to her.

"What are they going to do to her?" Sookie asked, watching Aerial blow-drying her hair through a crack in the open door to the bathroom. Eric followed her eyes.

"I don't know." He said, honestly. "I don't know if she'll be allowed to exist."


	5. Smells

**Summary:** _A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. Potentially E/S. This is post-season two. In terms of the books, this would be after the third book. (But I'm sticking to the True Blood version of the characters and past events…)_

**Chapter Five: **_Smells_

"Can we eat now?" Aerial asked when she emerged from the bathroom. Sookie could finally see her clearly, and what a picture it was… Her hair was pouffy from the hair-dryer, and overwhelmed her skinny frame. She had large eyes and a upturned nose. Paired with the huge hair and tiny body, she looked comically cartoon-y. She also happened to look like an ad for the bar, with her brilliantly red shirt.

"Please?" She added hopefully. Sookie felt her mouth turning up at the corners and snuck a sidelong glance at Eric, who was looking considerably less disgruntled that twenty or so minutes earlier. Sookie knew him well enough to know that if he were the kind of person who allowed his emotions to read on his face, he'd be smiling too.

"Sookie will go get you McDonald's, while you and I talk. Tell her what you want." Eric was trying very hard to pretend this was a reasonable plan. Aerial, however, shook her head.

"No. I don't think so." She had gone over everything that had happened tonight in her head during her shower. She'd come to the conclusion that these people, Sookie and Eric, didn't seem to want to hurt her. They had brought her here from the forest, where she was all alone, and they'd given her a nice, warm shower and clean clothes, and even a blow-dryer. Aerial liked Sookie very much, in fact. She was calm and she wasn't afraid of the big Eric man, which led Aerial to wonder if she might have let him scare her a bit more than was necessary. She decided that she shouldn't be afraid of him, because Sookie obviously wasn't.

At least that was in the shower. Now, standing in front of him, it was a little harder to remember. He was, after all, very very tall.

"Did you just say no?" He asked, but Aerial could feel that it wasn't really much of a question.

"I'd prefer to go with Sookie, thanks." Aerial smiled up at him, and then at Sookie.

"Yes, I'd prefer that I stayed with her also." Sookie also smiled at Eric. She had to admit it was fun, watching him take orders (well, at the very least _requests_) from a newborn and a human. Aerial inched toward Sookie, who grabbed Eric's leather jacket from the desk and held it out for Aerial to put on. The girl obeyed, and Sookie held her shoulders, as they beamed up at Eric together.

"We're doing drive-thru. And not so much as a peep from you." He said in a warning tone, meeting at Aerial's delighted gaze. How trustful little ones could be. Comforted by a smile (Sookie's of course, not his), the promise of a greasy, inedible meal and a shower. Aerial bobbed her head happily and then suddenly sniffed the air, like a puppy.

"Something in here smells _really_ good." She noted, standing on her bare tip toes, trying to find the root of the smell. Eric flashed Sookie a warning look. Sookie suddenly realized that the scent Aerial was searching for was the blood pumping through the very hands that were placed on her shoulders. Sookie let go of her quickly, and took a step toward the door.

"Alright, shall we go?" She asked. The distraction worked. Aerial smiled again, and came down from her toes, ready to bounce into the hall through the open door.

"Hold it." Eric grabbed the back of his jacket, holding her in place.

"Eric, she doesn't have any shoes on, she can't just walk around barefoot."

Eric stopped. That had not been the objection he was about to make.

"What are you suggesting? We go buy her shoes in the middle of the night?"

"Can't you just…carry her?"

Eric gave Sookie a murderous look, but before he had time to protest, Aerial was already looking up at him hopefully with the over-sized eyes. He was a very handsome man, she'd realized. It would be very nice if he held her. She wouldn't feel so… small and alone. Well, perhaps she would still feel small, but more in a nice way, and less in a scared way.

"You owe me a very generous drink," He said, staring Sookie right in the eyes before grabbing Aerial, who curled up into a ball in his arms. But before Sookie could protest, he was out the door.

Once in the car, Sookie decided to question Aerial herself before Eric had a chance to start with his inappropriate tone.

"Aerial, do you remember anything before you met us tonight?" Sookie asked, leaning toward the front passenger seat. The girl suddenly sniffed again, raising her nose, distracted. Eric rolled down the windows immediately though he appeared utterly absorbed in driving at least forty miles over the speed limit.

"Anything at all?"

"It was Amy's birthday this week. I remember that."

"Is Amy your friend?"

"She's my sister. Can you take me to see her, please?"

Eric found Aerial's impeccable habits of saying "please" and "thank you" rather annoying. It was very difficult to refuse a request when it was so pleadingly and politely phrased. Thankfully, Sookie replied before he had to.

"We'll see what we can do about that. Let's see now… do you remember anything after that?"

"Yep. Amy got a puppy, and while everyone was playing with it, it started running around. Someone had left the door open to the porch, so it ran outside. I said I'd go get it, and I ran after it."

Sookie and Eric exchanged a meaningful look in the rearview mirror.

"Did you find it?"

Aerial blinked, thinking. "I don't know."

She turned to face Sookie. "I don't remember, after that. I don't remember anything, until tonight."

She blinked fervently, her face scrunched up in thought. "What's wrong with me? What happened? Why-"

"We're here," Eric announced suddenly, before Aerial could ask any more questions. She looked up, and seeing that they were at the drive through, leaned over Eric, ordering through his window.

"Do you want anything?" He asked Sookie.

"No, thanks. But didn't you say you were hungry?" she asked with a smirk, knowing that Aerial was watching him.

"I'd prefer the aforementioned drink, when we get back to the bar." He replied coolly.

"You should really stop drinking so much," Sookie shot back. Aerial looked between them, as if following a tennis match. She didn't like grown-ups that thought they were being so stealthy.

"Are you an alcoholic?" She asked Eric. " My dad used to be one too." She added knowingly.

Eric rolled his eyes. "No more than you are."

Before Aerial had a chance to ask what the hell that was supposed to mean, a car behind them honked and they moved to the pickup window. Eric handed the girl several bills, picked up the bag and sped off before she'd had the chance to even get his change out of the register. He handed the bag to Sookie, bypassing Aerial's outreached fingers.

"No eating in the car."

Aerial pouted and folded her arms, but she could tell it was a losing battle. Fortunately for her, Eric paid very little attention to the speed limit once again, and it didn't take them very long to get to Fangtasia. When they pulled up into the parking lot, Eric parked the car as close to the back door as possible, once again.

Once they were inside his office, he knew he had to act fast to get any last shred of information Aerial could possibly offer on her maker. Once she got to the food, it was only going to be a matter of seconds before she realized it tasted like dirt, and after that… well, there would likely be a lot of yelping and whimpering and crying, and whatever it was that eleven year olds did when they were told that they were now vampire.

"When you went outside, was there anyone there?" He asked, setting her down on his desk.

Aerial scrunched up her face in thought, then nodded slowly. "I think there was. The puppy, it was sniffing someone…"

"What did they look like?"

Aerial closed her eyes, trying to remember.

"I don't know. I don't think I ever saw him."

"It was a him? You remember that?"

"I guess… I just kind of know."

Eric looked up at Sookie. Whoever had turned her was certainly no novice. Glamouring a human was one thing, but glamouring someone so strongly that the effect carried into vampire life… it was difficult, extremely difficult. And calculated. The bond between a vampire and a maker was deep, and it took powerful work to disguise it so well.

"Can I eat now? Finally?" Aerial asked impatiently, snapping Eric out of his thoughts.

Eric nodded at Sookie, who took the bag over to Aerial, who tore into it with a speed that was beyond human capability. She however, noticed nothing except the burger and fries in her lap. Eric's lip curled in disgust at the smell. Sookie silently agreed, thinking how much she preferred Lafayette's burgers. The fries however, did smell very appetizing. She knew she would get to eat them very soon.

The knock at the door came in at the same moment that Aerial bit into the burger.

"Come in, and close the door behind you," Eric said quietly, and Aerial spit out the bite she'd just taken. Pam stepped inside just in time for the display.

"Ewwwww." Aerial howled.

"And you wonder why I hate them so much?" Pam asked Eric, her nose curled up in disgust.

Eric laughed softly. Sookie couldn't help but smile as she surveyed the situation. Besides, she'd never seen Eric laugh before. At least, not in a way that wasn't thoroughly menacing.

"I take it you found her, then. Alive, obviously." Pam continued, surveying the scene. But a moment later she sniffed again. Before she could ask where the foreign vampire smell came from, Eric answered.

"No. Not alive."

"She's been turned?" Pam asked, even more disgusted, which Sookie hadn't even realized was possible.

"Why does this taste like shit?" Aerial asked abysmally, her eyes meeting Eric's.

He walked over to the desk, picked up the food from her lap, handing it to Sookie.

"Because you've been turned vampire."

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**Author's Note: Thank you so much everyone for your reviews, alerts and favorite-ing! I'm glad you're enjoying the story. Any ideas on where it will go? Feel free to offer some predictions in your reviews. I'd love to see where everyone thinks this is heading! How do you all feel about Aerial? **

**I know the chapters are quite short, but my pacing is best this way, I think. I enjoy posting often and the shorter chapters are best for keeping me posting daily/every couple of days. :)**


	6. Message from the Queen

**Refresher: **Eric asks Sookie's help to find a missing child victim of a vampire criminal. After unearthing the girl, Aerial, as a newly born vampire, they must find out who her maker is... and figure out how to tell her she's a vampire!

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**Chapter Six: **_Message from the Queen_

"No I'm not!" Aerial laughed. Pam rolled her eyes.

"I need to talk to you, Eric. Alone." Pam eyed Sookie with a sly smile on her face.

Eric was still staring at Aerial, unsure what to make of her reaction. "You can say whatever you're going to say in front of Sookie."

Pam did not look very happy to be doing that, but she obeyed.

"The Queen would like an update on the situation."

This made Eric pause, and turn. "Now? It's nearly sunrise."

"Tomorrow night."

Eric stood still, in the center of the room, thinking. Sookie could practically see the gears turning in his head. Everyone watched him, even Aerial, who still had an amused smile on her face. This was suddenly all very chaotic.

"Alright. Tomorrow, I will go and bring her. I have no responsibilities beyond that."

"What?!" Sookie objected indignantly. "What do you mean you have no more responsibilities? There's a child predator out there, turning children into _vampires_. We have to find him, before he does this to somebody else."

She pointed to Aerial, who was staring at her, shocked at the intensity of the outburst. Suddenly, everyone was staring at Aerial, like she was some sort of freak of nature, and she burst into tears, burying her face in the over-long sleeves of Eric's leather jacket.

"Oh no, honey, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean that-" She wrapped her arms around the huddle, which immediately moved. Aerial revealed her face with incredible speed, fangs poised an inch above Sookie's arm. But just as quickly, Eric was standing behind her, holding her chin, keeping her head from making contact with Sookie's flesh.

"Move," he commanded, looking her straight in the eye. Sookie retreated, and Eric released Aerial's head.

"If anyone gets a taste tonight, it's definitely going to be me." He said, making Pam smirk.

"You're what smelled so good!" Aerial realized what she'd been about to do, and started sobbing. "I don't wanna be a vampire, I just wanna go home! I wanna see the sun! Does this mean I can't go outside during the day _ever again_?!" She continued.

Sookie could see Eric's agitation growing, and it was aimed at her. Pam watched the spectacle with an amused half-smile.

"Is that all?" She asked.

"No!" Sookie cried again. "You can't send her to the Queen."

"Sookie, I need to talk to you. In private." Eric said in an even voice, though he was clearly angry with her. He looked over at Pam, before ushering Sookie out the door. "You sit with Aerial."

Sookie didn't get a chance to see Pam's face, before Eric ushered her out the back door, and into the parking lot. He listened for a moment, frozen like an animal, before he was assured that they were the only two people within hearing range.

"You can't give her to the Queen, god knows what they'll do to her."

"That's not my problem."

"Eric, please. She's important. She's seen her maker, she's the only one who can help us find him."

"That is no longer my problem either. It was my responsibility to find her body, dead or alive, and that is the extent of it. Theses crimes are beyond the scope of Area 9, I am under no obligation to solve them on my own." Eric considered that it might have been a very grave mistake to get a human involved, especially one as sensitive and feeling as Sookie, in such a case. This child had been bound to wreck havoc on Sookie's emotion, and he should have seen that earlier. It really was against his better judgment to get her involved. He allowed himself, for a moment, to feel her through their blood bond, and what flooded him only proved he was right.

"But what if it happens again, here?" She pursued, stubbornly.

"He's never struck twice in the same town."

"But what if-"

"Sookie. This is _not _your problem. It's not even a human problem. Thank you for your help. You will be sufficiently compensated tomorrow." He was so near, so close to her she could see the different shades of blue in his eyes, even under the weak streetlamp. Yet he was so cold, and unfeeling, she could not believe that this was the same man who had carried Aerial in his arms less than an hour earlier.

"No!" Sookie hit his chest with her fist, knowing he could barely feel it, that she could not hurt him. This child was alone, surrounded by strangers, far from home, at the mercy of some of the most unmerciful people Sookie could think of- The Queen and the Magistrate. Aerial was slightly more than two years older than Sookie had been when she was left an orphan. But even then, Sookie had still been human; she'd still had her home, Tara, Jason, and Gran.

"No," She cried again, repeating her feeble action, before she turned away from Eric to hide her tears. The world's unfairness suddenly crumbled all upon her at once, and it was no longer just about Aerial being kidnapped, or turned, or alone. It was also about Sookie. It was about the feeling of everything crumbling, all at the same moment, and the terror of being alone in a world of people a hundred times more powerful, the feeling of being small and helpless and utterly breakable. She felt Eric's arms wrap around her, holding her still as she struggled not to give away that she was crying, although she knew he could tell.

"Can you remember, Eric, the way it felt, when you were dying? Can you imagine, if you'd died, alone, and Godric hadn't been there? If he'd just disappeared, and left you, alone, again? Even more alone?"

She felt Eric's entire body stiffen at Godric's name, and slowly his arms turned her, so that she faced him. She refused to meet his eyes, ashamed at the tears that were still welling up and leaking. She hated to let him see her cry. She knew how silly and emotional he considered humans, and she hated more than anything, to prove him right. But when he took her chin and forced her to meet his eyes, he was not cocky, he was not angry or annoyed, or bored.

His gaze was steady and straightforward, and it made her feel naked, as if he had could read her innermost thoughts. But then she realized that it wasn't one sided. She had obviously touched a nerve, but instead of getting defensive and snapping, like he always did, Eric had allowed her to see it.

"If you brought your Queen the perpetrator, your would be highly praised. Maybe even promoted," She said weakly. He pretended to think this over, as she continued.

"I could try to see inside her mind."

Eric's posture suddenly changed, and the fragile moment between them was gone.

"But she's vampire. I thought you couldn't read vampire thoughts," He said, suspiciously.

"I can't, but- When Maryann put Tara in that trance, I couldn't read her thoughts either, not really, but I looked inside her mind, I sort of shifted things around. I could try, at least. Please. Let me try."

Eric shifted. "You really think I can get a promotion?" He asked, a smile forming at the corner of his lips. So this was the way he was going to play it. Sookie nodded, going along with his game. He suddenly headed back toward the door, and Sookie followed him into his office. Pam stood as far away as possible from the desk, where Aerial sat, making a disgusted face at a bottle of True Blood.

"I won't drink that!" Aerial said, setting the bottle down on the desk. Her fangs were fully extended, and Sookie was surprised to find that despite this, she still looked sort of adorable, and utterly cartoonish. With her disgruntled look, she could have had steam coming out of her ears.

"Can I go now?" Pam asked with a drawl.

"Yes." Eric affirmed. "And tomorrow you may take a message to the Queen. Tell her we have found the girl, and we are working on finding the perpetrator."

Pam halted, but caught herself and simply nodded with an impressed look at Sookie before escaping the office.

Eric and the pouty Aerial stared at each other.

"You won't drink this?" He asked. She shook her head.

"What am I going to do with you?" He said rhetorically, picking up the bottle of True Blood.

"Please don't send me away," Aerial said in a small voice. Eric halted. He came down to her level, crouching. Sookie watched, unsure whether he was going to scold her or crack a joke. But he simply looked her in the eye.

"I won't send you away. And you have to promise me to try and do your best to remember what happened to you."

Aerial nodded. Eric turned back to Sookie.

"It's nearly sunup. You can take my car and drive home. You can drive it back tomorrow before dusk, so we can get started as soon as it gets dark."

Sookie nodded. "Where is she going to sleep?"

Aerial suddenly looked petrified. "Do I have to sleep in a coffin? I don't want to! I don't wanna be dead, it's so creepy, I couldn't breathe in there."

"You don't need to breathe," Eric rolled his eyes, exasperated.

"So I can swim under water for ever?" She asked, intrigued. But before Eric could retort, she remembered the coffin. "I still don't want to sleep in there. It's creepy. I'm not dead!"

Eric let the obvious _yes you are_ slide in favor of calming her. "Since no one can know you're here, and we have no extra spaces, you can sleep with me." Sookie hid her smile behind her hand. Eric the big thousand-year old Viking vampire, sharing his little hidey-hole with an eleven year old newborn. She couldn't imagine anything more charming. Eric met her eyes, knowing exactly what she was thinking and glared at her, mouthing "you owe me". She shook her head. He tossed her his keys, and proceeded to his coffin, holding it open as Aerial clumsily climbed in, yawning.

"How do I make these things come out and go back in, anyway?" She asked, running her tongue over her fangs. Eric sighed, and followed her in.

This was definitely not the human he would have chosen to turn. That human wouldn't even let him have a bite. If it weren't for that human, he would have his bed all to himself, in fact.

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A/N: I hope Aerial's reaction still managed to surprise you! Remember to leave me reviews if you're reading, I'd love to hear where you'd like to see the story go. Even though I have a general idea, I can still incorporate bits and pieces of your ideas if I think they'd work well with what I'm planning. :)


	7. Taken

**Summary:** _A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. Potentially E/S. This is post-season two. In terms of the books, this would be after the third book. (But I'm sticking to the True Blood version of the characters and past events…)_

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**Chapter Seven: **_Taken_

The next day, Sookie got off work later than she was expecting to. Lisa, Arlene's daughter was running a fever, and her doctor's appointment went later than Arlene had expected, so Sookie stayed after her own shift had ended and dusk had begun to settle. It was a good thing she'd taken Eric's car to work (or maybe not _such_ a good thing, considering how many times people's curious thoughts leaked into her head, wondering how she'd gotten her hands on something so expensive when she refused to buy herself a new winter coat, wondering if she was dating someone new, a rich older man perhaps…). When Arlene arrived just after five, she was more than ready to get in the car and start driving toward Shreveport.

As she walked out the back door at Merlotte's, she felt the hair on the back of her neck rise, and she pulled her coat tighter around her, looking around. The lamp was weak, and she was surrounded by trees and parked cars, garbage dumpsters, which all created gaping spots of darkness. She had the distinct feeling of being watched. She allowed her guard down and listened for any thoughts nearby, but all she could hear was the soft buzz of the diners at Merlotte's, and more distinctly, Lafayette, who was closest to her, humming the lyrics of a Beyonce song to himself.

Which could only mean two things. She was being jumpy, with a vampire kidnapper on the loose, or that whoever was watching her, if here was indeed someone, was vampire. She especially disliked the second option, and scolded herself for not having left work early to arrive at Fangtasia before sundown. She finally decided that if someone really was there with the intention of harming her, that they would do it whether she stood a step away from the door or walked to the car, so she started walking briskly.

No one popped out of the shadows, but the feeling was still there. Sookie climbed inside as fast as she could, locking the doors, and turning the key in the ignition. She sped off as quickly as she could toward the bar.

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Sookie was late. Eric sat behind his desk with a sour face, watching Aerial drive a thumbtack into her thumb and then stare in amazement as the wound healed before her eyes. He felt that he should probably be worried about this sort of behavior, but he could honestly say that he could have cared less.

After nearly ten minutes of this, however, he grew bored and warned Aerial, "just make sure you don't cut off your head. That won't grow back."

She looked up at him, startled, and made a face. "Gross! Why would I do that?"

Eric eyed her thumb, which by now should have had about twenty holes in it. "I don't know, why would you stick a needle in your hand?"

Aerial considered this. "But it's sooo cool."

She set the thumbtack back on his desk, and proceeded to continue annoying him, now by practicing extending and retreating her fangs.

"Stop it," he snapped, after the tenth or so time.

"Well you won't let me bite anyone. Can I bite somebody? Please? I don't know how to do it, how do you do it?"

"You can't bite anybody, because nobody can know you're here." He said, watching the seconds tick by on the clock.

"Sookie knows I'm here," She said slyly. Eric met her eyes immediately, and the smile on her face evaporated.

"If you bite Sookie, I _will_ take you into the woods and leave you there." He warned, then went back to staring at the clock. Aerial gulped, and sat still for a whole two minutes before she tried to speak again. But before she could, Eric spoke.

"Sookie. Finally." And shut his eyes.

"How do you know?" Aerial asked. Sookie had not come in through the door, in fact the room was no different than before Eric had spoken.

"She just drove into the parking lot. See if you can hear her."

Aerial strained her ears and Eric relaxed, stretching his arms contently in the absence of her constant questions.

A minute later, Sookie still hadn't come in. Eric was beginning to wonder what she could be doing when Aerial spoke.

"I hear something funny."

Eric immediately froze and listened. Aside from the bar, which was filling quickly, he heard a strained sort of sound from the direction of the parking lot. A second later he stood next to his Corvette, the driver's door of which was closed but still unlocked, his keys lying on the ground beneath it. The back lot was empty, and the trees around it perfectly still.

* * *

"Make a noise and I'll drain you quicker than you can you can blink," A boyish voice warned Sookie, as if she could make a noise, even if she'd wanted to disobey. A hand held her in an iron grip around the neck, allowing her just enough air to breathe and not a touch more. Another arm gripped her even more tightly around the waist. There was no way she could move. She couldn't even see who was holding her. All she could feel were a pair of fangs, poised at her neck, ready to bite.

She tries to turn, away from the fangs, to see who was holding her, but there was no use, she was no match for a vampire. He had taken her into the woods as if he were holding a pillow instead of a person. She tried to will her pulse not to quicken and tempt the fangs any more than her bare neck already did to whomever was holding her. They were deep into the woods before the hand around her throat relaxed its grip and she managed to ask, "Who are you, what do you want?"

The other hand released her and she spun around to face her captor, knowing that she was very very screwed, and there was very very little chance of escaping someone who could outrun her, hear her every breath and pulse, and twist her neck as easily as a chicken. Not to mention that she was in the middle of the woods with no idea as to which way Fangtasia even was from here.

"I think you know exactly who I am," The vampire said, watching her. "And I think you know exactly what I want."

The person who stood in front of her watched, gazing at her in that terrifying predator stalking its prey look that she'd seen in the eyes of most vampires. It was the very look that penetrated you and made you understand that the person before you could rip you to shreds if he so wished. She gasped. But what made the sight a hundred times more terrifying was that the person standing in front of Sookie looked only slightly different than a thirteen year old boy.

He was paler, of course, and his fangs were out. He was about as tall as Sookie, and rail-thin, with wispy blonde curls around his ears and forehead. He had deep, dark eyes and lips that looked as if they'd been painted on almost, which were in the shape of a fierce scowl.

Sookie stared, knowing that this was no thirteen year old, yet not quite believing it.

"Where is she?" He asked, impatient.

"Oh you poor thing!" Sookie cried, stepping toward him. He stepped back in surprise.

"How old are you, really?" She asked, overcome by sadness. Was this the future that faced Aerial?

The vampire cocked his head, unsure what to make of her reaction.

"I am six hundred and thirty three years old." He said, narrowing his eyes at her.

Sookie was astonished. He was nearly as old as Eric, and so much older than Bill. She wished she could see inside his head, experience all the places he'd seen and the people had met, the things he'd lived through. When she'd imagined Aerial's kidnapper, she'd assumed he was a brute, an awful man, who preyed on children, a perverse hobby. But she realized suddenly that, of course, she could not have been farther from the truth.

"What's your name?" She asked.

"What's yours," he countered.

"Sookie," She said, holding out her hand. She knew she ought to be afraid of him, weary at the very least. He was dangerous, no matter how old he looked on the outside, and he could still kill her in less than a minute. But somehow, the fear had evaporated, and she knew in her bones somehow that he didn't want to hurt her.

Reluctantly, as if expecting a trick of some sort, he took her hand.

"Henry," He offered.

"Are you lonely? Is that why you turned her?" Sookie asked, quietly, sitting on the ground. He sank to the ground next to her, looking around.

He looked at Sookie, for a long moment, and smiled, a smile that was angry, and terrifying and sad all at once. "What do you know of loneliness, human?"

"You know, a lot of people say they want to be a kid forever. I don't think they know, what it means, what they're saying. I don't think anyone wants it, really." Sookie said, after a long pause. He said nothing, so she continued. "You're sort of the ideal vampire, aren't you? I mean, you can attract humans so easily, you're so pretty, so young, so helpless looking."

"That's why it's against all law," He said quietly.

"That's how you took them. You pretended you were one of them." She said. "But why did you- Before Aerial, you left seven bodies-"

"They were not right," He said, not meeting Sookie's gaze. "They wanted to die, once I drained them. They did not want to live."

"And Aerial? She did?"

He nodded, ever so slightly. "She was right."

Sookie watched him, a pool of pity and disgust flooding her stomach. She knew she ought to scold him, he had left seven children, lying dead and cold, seven empty little beds that would never again be warmed, but her only thought was that it was really Aerial she should be sorry for, not them.

"Where is she," he asked again.

"The sheriff has found her-"

"The one you belong to?" He interrupted. Sookie raised her nose in the air.

"I belong to myself."

The corners of his delicate lips curled up in genuine amusement. "The one you reek of, then."

Sookie laughed. She did not like this very much better.

"Does he have her?"

Sookie nodded. "For now. But, he must turn her over to the queen. He does not know if she will be allowed to exist."

Henry turned toward her sharply, fangs bared. Sookie pulled back. "I know no Queen, and I obey no one."

Sookie became nervous, suddenly, at the thought of Eric. She wished he were here. She'd much rather he handled all this. She wasn't sure whose side she was anymore, which worried her. She was sitting in the middle of the woods, in the middle of the night, sympathizing with a six hundred year old vampire child-predator.

Henry's head raised slowly, and he cocked it again to one side, listening intently. A smile spread across his face, and it was so contagious that Sookie nearly smiled back in spite of her fear.

"He comes, your vampire." It was as if Eric had been able to read her thoughts.

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A/N: We're getting close! Thoughts on the villain?


	8. Turning

**Summary:** _A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. Potentially E/S. This is post-season two. In terms of the books, this would be after the third book. (But I'm sticking to the True Blood version of the characters and past events…)_

**Author's Note:**_ Sorry guys for the lengthy delay. I thought I'd written myself into a bit of a corner because I hadn't quite planned Sookie's being taken hostage by Henry and the ending. But I've figured some things out and added a twist for this chapter! I hope you enjoy it. I hope the twist and upsoming events make up for the lost time! I will definitely keep posting as soon as I can, but I'm also planning a one-shot from Henry's POV, so be on the lookout for that. It'll most likely be called **Eternal Child**, and it should be up within the next couple of days! _

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**Chapter Eight: **_Turning_

Before Sookie could feel relief, Henry had seized her once again, one hand around her throat, the other around her waist, holding her hips to his.

"Um, I won't run-"

Henry chucked ever so slightly into her ear. She could feel his breath making the little baby hairs above her ear tickle.

"I don't doubt it."

Before Sookie could protest, Eric stood before her.

"Release the human," he growled. Henry laughed.

"Give me mine, I'll give you yours."

"The only thing I'm giving is _you_, to the Queen." Eric's rage multiplied, exponentially, each time the little beast smiled.

"Not while I have your human by the fragile little neck," Henry replied, calm.

"She is only a human, there are many others. You will win nothing by harming her." The only indication that Eric was less than placid were his curled fists.

Henry laughs. "If _you_ don't even believe what you're saying, how am I supposed to?"

Eric bared his fangs.

"Now, now. Let's be calm. We both know that this one is special to you. Just as Aerial is special to me. Although, I must say, yours won't keep as well." Henry bent Sookie's neck to the left. She could feel her artery pulsing. His fangs poised an inch above it. A minute ago Sookie sat in front of Henry, knowing he wouldn't hurt her. Now, she wasn't not so sure.

"It would really be a shame, to share her with me." He continued, hissing at Eric. Sookie shivered. She felt his breath on her neck.

"Eric, give her to him." She said.

"You wanted justice." Eric said, glaring at the pair of them. "You wanted to catch him. Just because he _looks_ like a child doesn't mean he isn't a _killer_, Sookie."

Henry tensed. Sookie could feel his muscles, he gripped her tighter. She could barely breathe. "I am not a killer."

Eric raised his eyebrows. "We found your bodies. We wouldn't exactly call the _alive_."

Sookie glared at Eric. He was not helping. Henry was only growing more and more upset, and he was gripping her tighter, which did not make her feel any calmer about the situation.

"I didn't drain them for pleasure. They wished to join me." Henry spoke, his tone ever so slightly defensive. Eric smirked again.

"Did they? Then why did you not _make_ them?"

Henry bore his eyes into Eric's condescending face.

"You have never drained someone who wished to be one, only to read the disgust in their eyes? Their fear? Of you?" He whispered. Eric tensed. Sookie suddenly considered how awful it must be, the mechanics of it all. To drink, drink yourself full, to drain the life from someone until the very last drop that made the difference between death and a pumping, beating heart. And then, after nearly killing them, to offer yourself, to offer the most monstrous part of yourself that would turn them too into a predator, capable of the very same. It was hard to imagine not feeling utterly horrified at the person responsible for your death.

Eric's eyes met Sookie's for the briefest moment, and Henry whispered again in her ear. "He has thought of turning you. You must mean a lot to him."

This was certainly news to Sookie. And not the kind she really wanted to hear right now.

"So you humanely allowed them to _die_?" Eric replied, bringing the subject back to its original course, away from Sookie.

"It is more humane than to let them live in the night, bound to me, despite their disgust."

"And Aerial is different? This cartoon you have chosen for your mate?"

Henry bared his teeth again. Sookie had to put a stop to this. It was ridiculous. These two could go on for hours, ticking each other off, and she had no intention of getting bitten because of it.

"Eric!" She interrupted. They seemed to remember her presence. They both turned to look at her at her. "Do you trust me?"

Eric hesitated. It was the very same question he'd asked her in the church. She had trusted him then, even though he had only ended up getting himself chained in silver. Did he trust her? She was so gullible, and human, and she only wanted to believe the best of others. And she'd developed a great knack for getting herself abducted. She had the potential to get him into much, much bigger trouble than he was already in…

"Yes." He kept his gaze steady, as his entire being, his mind and logic screamed the very opposite.

"Then bring Aerial, please."

Eric nodded once, with a very pained look on his face, and disappeared into the trees. A minute later Henry released her. He sniffed the air, tilting his head to the right, with a look of puzzlement, which reminded Sookie of a thirteen year old watching a teacher write a particularly complex algebra problem on the chalkboard.

"I _am_ sorry," Henry said, somewhat absent-mindedly.

"It's alright, I understand," Sookie examined him. "You just want her back. But the thing is, why'd you leave her there alone in the first place? I thought you had to be buried, together."

Henry looked up at her. "You know much about this, human."

She blushed. "No, it's not like that. My ex-boyfriend, Bill, he had to turn this girl, Jessica and-" She cut herself off. "Long story, nevermind. Anyway he said-"

"We slept together in the ground. But I wake even when she doesn't, the first night." He looked away. "I smelled him, your vampire, searching. I had to leave. She wasn't supposed to wake so early. I went back for her."

"But she was gone." Sookie filled in. Henry nodded.

They stood in silence for a minute or two, until Sookie couldn't keep herself from asking.

"I thought it was illegal-How did you live for so long, if turning young ones-"

Henry laughed. "I do not live amongst them, vampires. Or humans. I live alone. I know no Queen, or King, or Magistrate. I am an outlaw, everywhere."

"It must be awful lonely."

Henry looked away, off into the distance.

"But, where is your maker?" Sookie continued cautiously.

Henry laughed again, bitter. He hadn't spoken of these things to few, and not in a hundred years, at least. And most certainly not to any human. But this human, she treated him not like an abomination, or a child. He found it unsettling, that she didn't cringe when she saw his fangs, on his childish face. He was a monster among monsters, and she wasn't running. Granted, he did have her in a position where running was not exactly an option, even if she so desired.

"You speak of things you do not understand, human," He said.

Sookie kept her gaze even.

"You play with vampires? You like the danger? The thrill?" He continued, changing the subject.

"No," She said. "It just sort of happened, I guess. I think I find regular people kind of… noisy sometimes."

They sat in silence for several long minutes.

"I never knew him," said Henry, so faintly she can barely make out the words. "I woke and he was gone. I was buried in the Black Forest, alone. With the most _terrible _hunger."

_I'm so sorry_ Sookie almost said, but she caught herself, knowing how much she hated being on the receiving end of pity. "So you've lived alone then? All this time?"

Henry nodded, ever so slightly. "Occasionally, there were _meetings_ with others. But never with _him_."

"You know it was a _him_ then? How?" Sookie asked, her curiosity getting the best of her. As soon as she asked she felt that she may have overstepped a boundary. But Henry just smiled, one corner of his mouth twitching up, a tinge menacingly, as his brows came together ever so slightly in consideration.

"His smell. I know his smell. It has stayed with me." Suddenly he cocked his head, thoughtfully again.

And before Sookie could blink, he stood, in a offensive-looking lunge, hands held out to his sides in midair, his senses alert. Sookie looked around nervously.

"That is the smell. Your vampire. His smell. He smells of him."

"What? He's been hanging around with your maker?" Sookie asked, wishing she could laugh. Aside from looking completely animalistic at the moment, Henry also happened to look like a very intense pre-pubescent boy who was on the verge of a tantrum. The absurdity of the moment was just too much.

"No. The smell is not on him. It's in him. It _is _him. Part of him. Part of the essence of him. We are of the same vampire."

Sookie sat, gaping at him, trying to follow. Then it clicked, and her jaw nearly dropped.

"Godric?" Henry turned to her, his concentration interrupted by her exclamation.

"_He _is your _maker_?"

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**A/N: **_Thanks for all the reviews, favoriting and alerts!(Hint Hint) I get so excited when I see people leaving comments and wondering about the story. I'd love to hear from you. What's your feeling on the new development?_


	9. Revelations

**Summary:** _A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. Potentially E/S. This is post-season two. In terms of the books, this would be after the third book. (But I'm sticking to the True Blood version of the characters and past events…)_

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**Chapter Nine: **_Revelations_

Henry turned to her, slowly. "_You_ know my maker?"

Sookie stared at him, still in shock. She forced herself to nod ever so slightly. When Godric had said that there were things he regretted in his past, that he had done terrible things, _this_ was not what she'd imagined. She'd never considered that someone as kind and wise as Godric, could do something this _savage_ and tragic.

"Is he here? In the area?" He asked, not taking his eyes from her.

Before Sookie could reply, she was on her feet once again. Henry had an iron hold on her again. She guessed this meant Eric would be arriving.

"Is he?" Henry whispered in her ear. But Eric had arrived, gripping Aerial, who had would her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck, like a baby koala. Sookie would have smiled if it weren't for the hold Henry had her in, which was making it ever so slightly more difficult to breathe.

"Now what?" Eric growled at Sookie, holding Aerial around the waist. She had turned toward Henry and Sookie, only to see the former with a tight hold around the latter's neck. Her eyes widened, and her fangs came out instantly, as she clawed toward Henry. Eric held her back.

"Let her go!" Aerial snarled, fangs bared, trying to pounce. Eric held her back with one arm, hanging off his hip.

"Stop it!" He reprimanded sternly. Aerial looked up at him and retracted her fangs.

"Well you're not helping!" She accused.

Eric turned toward Henry.

"Even your child wishes you to release her," He said, with a touch of gloating, looking over at Sookie.

Henry paid little attention. He had barely even looked at Aerial. Eric suddenly got the feeling that there was something very very wrong with the picture.

"Let her go!" Aerial howled again, on the verge of a tantrum. "She's my friend!"

"Where is he, this… Godric?" Henry whispered in Sookie's ear.

She hesitated.

Eric stepped forward, tightening his hold on the flailing newborn.

"What do you know of Godric?" He asked. Sookie could tell beneath the calm outer appearance he was shaken.

"Where is he?" Henry pressed.

"What do you _want_ with him?" Eric responded aggressively. They had both stepped forward, and they were only inches apart. Aerial could have easily touched Henry (or Sookie for that matter) if she reached forward. But she had shrunk back nervously with the combination of Eric's uneasiness and the terrifying childish face of Henry, which loomed a little too close.

"He is my maker." Henry stated, in a tone that might have been very appropriate had he been challenging Eric to a duel.

Eric froze completely, only his eyes moving, from Sookie's concerned face to Henry's determined one. Sookie nodded ever so slightly, as if affirming the truth of this statement. But what did she know? She was only a human. These were vampire matters this child-slayer spoke of. Eric inhaled deeply, taking in Henry's scent. If Godric truly was his maker, they would have a common essence… Something he would have surely noticed by now.

But Henry was covered in earth. Eric's nose, now paying attention to the smells buried under the dirt and forest smells, uncovered a strikingly familiar scent that revealed that Henry was in fact telling the truth.

"Where is my maker?" Henry repeated yet again.

Eric dropped Aerial, who cowered behind him, away from Henry, whose fangs were still disturbingly bared. Eric growled. Godric had met the sun to repent for his sins. Sins that Eric imagined to be most identical to the being in front of him, which was still holding Sookie hostage. This little atrocity was one of the reasons Godric had been determined to burn, he was sure of it.

Sookie could read Eric's train of thought quite easily, even without being able to read his mind per se. She could tell that he was getting quite enraged, and the last thing she wanted to be was caught in the middle between two infuriated vampires who wanted nothing more than to rip each other's throats out.

"Uh, Henry?" She said quietly, keeping her eyes on Eric, hoping he would remember her presence and that it might keep him from striking. Both of them looked startled when they heard her voice. It was obvious that they'd quite forgotten the presence of the silly little mortal.

"Godric is… gone, Henry." Sookie continued, her voice wavering slightly as Eric met her eyes. She could have sworn she'd seen a shadow of relief pass his eyes. Eric hated to hear the words, she knew, but he hated it much less than having to actually say them himself.

"What do you mean _gone_?" Henry snarled irritably.

"He- He met the sun, a little more than a year ago," Sookie said, feeling that horrible clench between her eyes, nose, and the back of the throat that threatened to fill her eyes with tears. She remembered the rooftop, and she was glad to have been the last to see Godric, but his sacrifice still upset her. He had been one of the most humane beings she'd known, human or vampire, and she often wished he was still alive.

Henry's hold on Sookie slackened, then he brought his arms down. She turned toward him. He looked… well she wasn't sure how to describe it, exactly. The anger hadn't quite dissipated, but there was sadness in it, desperation, as if his only and last hope had just been extinguished.

"Who's Godric?" Aerial piped up from behind Eric, finding of course, the most opportune moment to intervene. Seeing that Sookie was free, she slithered over to her and wrapped her arms around her waist. Sookie wrapped an arm around her instinctively, and Aerial sniffed deeply. Her fangs came out automatically at the delicious aroma of Sookie's blood, but she managed to restrain herself and retract them.

Aerial's question had reminded Henry of her existence, and he looked at her for the first time. Their eyes met and Aerial's hold around Sookie tightened a little. Sookie opened her mouth to reply to Aerial's question, but Henry shot her a look that stopped her dead in her tracks, leaving her with her mouth open. She looked over at Eric, who was obviously still stunned, and watching the three of them as if watching a television show that had turned out to be somehow actually related to his life.

Henry stepped toward Aerial, who shrunk back. Aerial was beginning to remember, bits and pieces of things, and this person featured in those fragments. And they were not very nice fragments at all. Lying back on the floor of the forest, in the damp, freezing leaves, a hole being torn in her party dress, by sharp fangs. The same fangs, piercing her chest, just above her heart, sucking. She shivered. Sookie was so warm. Henry was cold. She hadn't touched him, but she could tell. He reached out for Aerial, as if to take her from Sookie, which only made her shrink back further.

"Godric was my maker," Henry said, his eyes piercing into hers. "As I am yours."

"_You_ did this to me?" She asked stepping out slightly, folding her arms accusingly. "_Why?_"

He stared at her, astonished. "You asked me to."

"And you _believed _me?" She asked, incredulous. "I asked go to London for my birthday too, and I didn't get that!"

All three of the others were now watching her, confused by the statement.

"I'm just a kid," she clarified. "I shouldn't always get what I want, should I? I mean… How was I supposed to know what all this meant?"

Henry was staring at her blankly.

"I apologize," he said finally, taking a step back. He looked up at Sookie, and she knew he meant to include her also in the apology. He took another step back, and suddenly she understood that he was preparing to leave. Alone.

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**Author's Note: **_Sadly, no meeting with Godric. A lot of you have wondered whether my version of Godric is the one in the show or the one in the book... Honestly, I hadn't read the book before I started this story, but I picked it up and read the parts with Godric after a lot of you mentioned that Henry reminded you of him. I had no idea book-Godric had been into kids, but once I found out, it clicked suddenly that Godric would be Henry's maker. I think that while the show-Godric isn't shown to be into kids, that it isn't impossible for him to have turned someone like Henry, which I only imagine would add to his heavy conscience. So I guess the answer is... a bit of both Godrics, but mainly the one from he show. _

_As for Henry, he is inspired by Peter Pan mostly... only a darker version of the Eternal Childhood. And perhaps a bit of Claudia, from interview with a vampire, which I just recently saw. If you like Henry, check out my other story Eternal Child, which is from his POV and tells you about him as a character. I might post it as a bonus chapter at the very end of this story. I'm considering giving him his very own multi-chapter story, and publishing it in installments on a blog, since it wouldn't really be a True Blood fanfic but an original piece (since Sookie and Eric and the other characters, except for Aerial who is also original, would most likely not be making appearances). My fiction blog to which it will be posted is: www serialfictions blogspot com (insert dots in the spaces). Check it out._

_What do you guys think of that idea? Would you be interested in following something of the sort?_

_And finally, thanks for the reviews! (And keep them coming ;) )_


	10. Arrangements

**Summary:** _A trail of missing children leads straight into Shreveport, and Eric asks his favorite telepath to help find the latest victim. Potentially E/S. This is post-season two. In terms of the books, this would be after the third book. (But I'm sticking to the True Blood version of the characters and past events…)_

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**Chapter Ten: **_Departure?_

"Wait," she said. "What about Aerial? You've come for her, haven't you?"

"I've made a mistake." He said.

Eric snarled. "So you're going to leave your mistake for us to deal with? I think not."

"She does not wish to join me." Henry replied, his eyes still locked with Aerial's. Sookie felt the connection between their gazes was so strong that she felt sure that if she extended her fingertips she could touch it.

Sookie looked at him sternly. "You can't just make her and then leave her with us. Don't you see? She needs you."

Henry considered this, then stepped backward again. "Your vampire can teach her the ways."

Eric put a hand on Aerial's shoulder and inched her toward Henry. "I don't think so."

At that moment, Aerial burst into very vocal tears, and sat on the ground. Sookie immediately sank next to her, patting her hair, but not quite hugging her. She hardly needed streaks of bloody tears across the front of her winter coat.

"You ought to be ashamed of yourselves!" She scolded, looking up at both Henry and Eric. "Making a little girl cry!"

"Aerial honey, it's all right. I want you. These stupid men don't know what they're doin', do they? You can come live with me, alright? What do you think about that?"

Just as Aerial raised her head and said "Really?" Eric interrupted.

"Are you out of your mind?" He asked Sookie in a cold, even voice. "There are so many things wrong with what you just said I don't think you even _know_ all of them."

This made Aerial very ticked off, obviously, because she crossed her hands (just like Sookie had, during Eric's interruption), and shot her mouth off again.

"Hey, mister. I'm _eleven_, and I can do whatever I want, and I can live with whoever I want to!" She stated. Eric ignored her completely, still focusing solely on Sookie.

"It's _illegal_. _She's_ illegal. It will never be allowed, even if everything else weren't so… wrong about it." He stated again, adamant.

Sookie was so caught up in opposing him, that she hadn't stopped to actually consider what it would mean to play foster mother to an eleven year old vampire. It would mean staying up most of the night to make sure Aerial wasn't getting herself into trouble… but even then, she could hardly stop her from running off, or glamouring people, or even feeding from them. And she couldn't even imagine what everyone in Bon Temps would say if they found out she had a vampire living at her house. And of course, there were all sorts of vampire things Aerial would have to learn, and Sookie could hardly teach her like Bill had taught Jessica. Eric could feel her doubt, and he nodded at her ever so slightly.

"You know I'm right," he stated simply.

Sookie hated to admit it, so she turned toward Henry, who was still standing a few paces back, watching the scene unfold. Her gaze into his eyes was piercing, so piercing he had to look away.

"She does not want me," He said stiffly, and Sookie realized that he had been hurt by Aerial's outburst.

"Well of course she wants you! Otherwise she wouldn't be upset at you!" Sookie pointed out. "Don't you remember what it was like, to be a child? You get upset at the people closest to you, and you want their approval, even though you would never admit it."

Perhaps this wasn't 100% true in Aerial's case, Sookie thought, but she was sure it would be soon enough, if only Aerial and Henry got to know each other. They obviously needed each other, considering how lonely Henry seemed and how inadequate her caring for Aerial would be. And Eric of course would never take the job of caring for her… And if the Queen found out-well, Sookie did not want to think about that.

Henry seemed to be considering Sookie's words, and walking toward Aerial again.

"Do you accept my apology?" He asked her.

Aerial hesitated, enjoying her power for a moment before she said, "Yes, I think I do."

"Would you like to join me?" He asked, extending his hand to her.

She looked up at Sookie and Eric, suddenly alarmed at the idea of going anywhere without them.

"Where are you going?" She asked.

He shrugged. "Where would you like to go? To me, it does not matter."

"We can go anywhere?" She asked, wide-eyed. Sookie smiled at her genuine excitement.

Henry nodded. "Wherever you would like."

"I want to see Big Ben! And Versailles! And the Amazon!" She said, jumping up.

Henry smiled, and for the first time it was not menacing or bitter, but genuinely amused, maybe even with a flicker of anticipation.

"Can we swim there?! Since we don't need to breathe?" Aerial asked, and Sookie laughed. Henry looked taken aback with the question, and all he said was "We'll see."

"Where do you think you're going, exactly?" Eric asked suddenly.

"London, I think, first!" Aerial replied happily grinning, her flicking her long dark brown hair.

Eric glared at her until she had stopped moving and her face had fallen.

"What? You asked," She said defensively.

Eric turned to Sookie, ignoring her. "They're going to the Queen. I already sent the note, informing her of Aerial's existence, I can hardly say "Nevermind, I didn't find a child vampire."

Sookie stared blankly at him. She had forgotten completely about the note. Shit. She looked at Henry, who had slipped his arms protectively around Aerial, holding her in front of him.

"You will not take her from me. She is mine. I have waited six centuries for her." He said. His face was set in a determined expression of stone. Aerial gasped at hearing his age, but Eric's intimidating voice kept her from commenting further.

"She is not what we were originally after," He said. Sookie grabbed his arm, suddenly, realizing what he was implying.

"Eric, no." He looked toward her.

"And why _not_?"

"Because," Sookie mutter feebly. What would make him let them go? The whole Godric subject wasn't likely to help much, certainly. It would definitely work against her point.

"Because it would be such a hassle, wouldn't it, having to go over this, telling the Queen all the details. I mean-What if she makes you keep her? Aerial?"

Eric laughed. "Really, Sookie? That's how you are trying to convince me? Didn't you say last night, that the Queen would applaud my efforts? Honor me, if I found the killer?"

Sookie dropped the fake argument.

"Fine then. Please. I know you think I'm overly emotional and all that, but Jesus Eric, have you no heart?" She looked at Aerial and Henry, a pair of thin, pale children, one of them covered entirely in dirt. They looked like siblings, orphans, clutching at each other as though they were the only thing each other had. Even though she knew Henry was far from helpless, she also knew he was hopelessly childlike and lonely, despite his vampirism. And Aerial was only eleven, in human years, and not yet a vampire for three days.

"I know they're not children, Eric, I understand. But that doesn't make it any less… horrible. And-Well, maybe they're not supposed to exist or whatever, but they do already, so why not make the best of it then?"

Eric watched Sookie's eyes fill with tears throughout the speech, and then considered Aerial and Henry, who really did look atrociously pitiable, standing there together. He thought of Godric again, and anger flared through his body, but seeing the fear in Henry's face, he realized that destroying one of the factors that had added to Godric's death would not bring him back, it would not make it any less painful.

And it would make Sookie very grateful. Possibly grateful enough even to let him take a sip of her-possibly even—

"Go," He said. "Before I change my mind."

Aerial pounced instantly on Sookie. Tears poured out of her eyes, getting blood on Sookie's front. Sookie sighed. So much for the coat.

"Promise you'll come back and visit!" She insisted, and Aerial nodded. She pulled away and pounced on Eric next, which he was certainly not expecting. While they were having their moment, Sookie turned to Henry.

"I don't know what happened, when you were— made. But he was kind, and wise, your maker, when I met him." She said quietly, even though she knew Eric could hear her perfectly.

Henry nodded at her, as Aerial bounded back toward him.

"Thank you," he said, and nodded at the both of them before he and Aerial became a blur in the trees and disappeared in the dark night.

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**Author's Note:**_We're coming to a close... There will be one more chapter, an epilogue. After that, I'll be starting on the original piece about Henry. I'll be doing installments, Charles-Dickens style, both on here (in this category) and on my fiction blog, www serialfictions blogspot com (insert dots in the spaces). I've posted a synopsis of Eternal Childhood, and I'm planning on publishing in installments, and posting bonuses like playlists and photos/illustrations to accompany the chapters. Check it out, follow, and subscribe to it! Each chapter will then end up in your inbox as soon as it comes out. :)_


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